PHILADELPHJIA, Pa. (April 28, 2011) — The women's 4x400-meter relay team was the lone representative of Lincoln University in the opening day of the 117th Penn Relays, and the four Lady Lions performed admirably considering the circumstances.
Without the team's MVP and the school's Female Athlete of the Year in senior Kristina Rembert (Bronx, NY/Cathedral), the group of Taylor Lyons (Oakland, Calif./Holy Names HS), Shannon Spaulding (Stamford, CT/Westhill HS), Tynisha Sewell (Baltimore, MD/Parkville) and Kimberly Nurse (Newark, DE/Hodgson Vo-Tech) rallied in her absence. Rembert could not compete having fallen ill this week.
LU ran a time of 4:10.19 for sixth in their heat and 78th overall in the collegiate women's division. They also dealt with a two-hour weather delay and a chilly evening as the temperatures dipped on the University of Pennsylvania campus.
Spaulding, motivated by the heightened expectations of the week and the necessity of her performance given her fallen teammate, proved to be the leader with a career-best 61-second split.
"Pig (Rembert) couldn't run so we had to switch it up a bit but we still did well," she said. "I was still a little nervous going out there without her."
It was her first Penn Relays experience, having attended the world-renown event once before as a fan in high school.
She ran the second leg after Lyons led off. Lyons, running as the alternate for Rembert, persevered despite being slowed by a knee injury of her own. An Oakland, Calif., native, it was also her first Penn Relays.
"It's nerve-wracking," she said. "But it's a welcoming atmosphere. Everybody did well."
Sewell then completed the third leg as a senior competing in her final Penn Relays. After a broken foot brought a disappointing end to her indoor season, she delivered with a solid effort on Thursday under the Franklin Field lights.
“I died that last 50 meters," Sewell said. "I tried to leave it out on the track and I did. I'm happy."
She attempted to instill her veteran leadership to the young group. She admitted it's been challenging at times but hopes that the legacy she inherited is one that carries on in the future.
"It's been fun," she said. "It's been hard. We're trying to make them disciplined so we're trying to help them get there so they can help the freshmen next year."
Nurse, meanwhile, brought up the anchor and actually ran with the protective tape for her hamstring wrapped around her ankle. In place to help prevent the nagging charley horses that have been bothering her lately, it slipped down her leg as she took the baton from Sewell. The moment was more comedic than anything as it did not interfere with her stride.
"I think we did pretty good," Nurse said. "We ran our best. It's cold, it was raining. We did our best. We left our hearts on the track."
Up Next
The Lady Lions will compete in two other race this Penn Relays, both of which will be on Friday. The 4x200 is set for 2:10 p.m. and the College Women's Sprint Medley Championship of America is scheduled for 6:20 p.m. For live results, visit www.thepennrelays.com
— LU —
